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The Influence of Attitudes and Affect onWillingness to Communicate and Second

Language Communication

Tomoko YashimaKansai University

Lori Zenuk-NishideKyoto Gaidai Nishi High School

Kazuaki ShimizuKansai University

This article investigates results and antecedents ofwillingness to communicate (WTC) in a second language(L2) through 2 separate investigations conducted withJapanese adolescent learners of English. In the firstinvestigation, involving 160 students, a model was

Tomoko Yashima, Institute of Foreign Language Education and Research;Lori Zenuk-Nishide, Course of International and Cultural Studies; KazuakiShimizu, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Sociology.

This research was partially supported by a research grant fromKansai University during 2001 and 2002. An earlier version of this articlewas presented under the title Influence of Attitudes and Affect on L2Communication: A Study of Japanese High School Students at the 13thWorld Congress of Applied Linguistics in Singapore on December 17, 2002.We would like to thank Peter MacIntyre for letting us use thecommunication-related scales that he adapted from McCroskey andRichmond (1991) to refer to second language as well as for his valuablesuggestions, and Linda Viswat for her valuable comments. We would alsolike to express our gratitude to anonymous reviewers for their very helpfulsuggestions on an earlier version of this article.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to TomokoYashima, Institute of Foreign Language Education and Research, KansaiUniversity, 3-3-35, Yamate-cho, Suita-shi, Osaka, Japan. Internet:[email protected]

119

Language Learning 54:1, March 2004, pp. 119–152

created based on the hypothesis that WTC results inmore frequent communication in the L2 and that theattitudinal construct international posture leads to WTCand communication behavior. This model was tested withstructural equation modeling and was found to fit thedata well. The second investigation with 60 studentswho participated in a study-abroad program in theUnited States confirmed the results of the first. Finally,frequency of communication was shown to correlate withsatisfaction in interpersonal relationships during thesojourn.

A goal of second language (L2) and foreign language (FL)

learning is to facilitate better communication and understanding

between individuals who come from different cultural back-

grounds and speak different languages. MacIntyre, Clement,

Dornyei, and Noels (1998) emphasized communicative goals

using the conceptual model of willingness to communicate

(WTC), in which L2 proficiency is not regarded as the goal of

learning an L2 per se but is seen as a means to achieve inter-

personal/intercultural goals. Both state and trait variables,

including self-confidence, intergroup motivation, intergroup atti-

tudes, and personality, were shown to affect one’s WTC in the L2

in a given situation.

Relevance of Willingness to Communicate in an L2 in the JapaneseContext of English as a Foreign Language

Why does this model have relevance in the Japanese con-

text of English as a foreign language (EFL), in which daily

interaction with speakers of English is limited? English is impor-

tant as a school subject in Japan, particularly as it is a subject

covered in entrance examinations to higher education, and this

tends to determine the content of programs offered in junior and

senior high schools (see Gorsuch, 2000). Recently, teachers seem

to be caught between society’s demand for improving practical

120 Language Learning Vol. 54, No. 1

communicative skills, on the one hand, and pressure to prepare

students for entrance examinations, on the other, which man-

dates a continued focus on grammar/translation. Many Japanese

adolescents, preoccupied with preparing for entrance exams to

higher education, concentrate on raising test scores by memoriz-

ing vocabulary/idiomatic expressions and practicing sentence

translation. These activities are of some value for improving L2

proficiency, but under these circumstances, ‘‘communicating

with people in the world’’ as a goal of EFL may seem somewhat

unrealistic. On the other hand, an increasing number of high

school students participate in study-abroad programs and inten-

sive English courses often targeted toward learning to commu-

nicate in English. The growing interest in these programs

indicates that many students perceive a need to acquire compe-

tency in English as a means of international communication.

This phenomenon, in light of past research on Japanese EFL

learners’ orientations (reasons to study English; Kimura,

Nakata, & Okumura, 2001; Yashima, 2000), seems to suggest

that Japanese youth typically have dual orientations in studying

English: a short-term realistic goal related to examinations and

grades, and a somewhat vague long-term objective related to

using English for international/intercultural communication.

In a series of studies conducted with Japanese high school

students who sojourned in the United States for the purpose of

studying English and experiencing a different culture, partici-

pants identified, in semistructured interviews and open-ended

questionnaires, ‘‘taking initiative to communicate with Ameri-

can classmates or host families’’ and ‘‘being open and sharing

one’s feelings/thoughts’’ as important behavioral repertoires that

helped them to attain satisfaction in their sojourn experience

(Yashima, 2002b; Yashima & Tanaka, 1996, 2001; Yashima &

Viswat, 1993). Many students found it particularly vital, though

difficult, to initiate interactions and make friends at school. One

student’s comment in an interview illustrates students’ percep-

tion (see Yashima, 2002b, for more examples): ‘‘If I’m quiet in

Japan, my friend will talk to me and say, ‘What happened?’ But

Yashima, Zenuk-Nishide, and Shimizu 121

here they will think ‘She is quiet, so she doesn’t want to speak to

us.’ So I’ve got to talk to them.’’ Many students stated that what

they wanted to change in their behavior was to take initiative in

talking to people at school instead of waiting for someone to talk

to them, which did not happen as often as they had expected. We

might say that although many students had the desire to inter-

act with their hosts, they were not quite ready to communicate

because of a multitude of factors, including state L2 use anxiety

and perceived lack of L2 competence, as in MacIntyre’s (1994)

model of WTC. In some cases a vicious cycle was generated:

Students need to communicate with host nationals to improve

their communicative competence and gain confidence in using

the L2, but since they do not have confidence, they cannot create

opportunities by initiating interactions.

Contextual variables, such as when and where the interac-

tion takes place, who the communication partner is, and who is

present in the situation, do indeed affect how willing one is to

communicate in a given situation. It was demonstrated in

Yashima (2002b) that the receptivity of host family members

has a supporting function. Some students reported that with

the help of accommodating hosts who tried to involve students

in interactions, they could open themselves up and achieve

satisfaction in human relationships. Host families serve as

‘‘guardians’’ to students by taking on the responsibility of provid-

ing support. To make friends at school, however, students have

to build interpersonal relationships by themselves using the

language they are trying to learn. The students need to work

hard to secure their places in the new environment. From an L2

teaching/learning perspective, it is hoped that the students

acquire the necessary skills and WTC to change the dynamism

of interaction by themselves rather than leaving it to the empa-

thy/control of partners in intercultural interactions.

To improve communicative skills one needs to use lan-

guage. This is specifically why WTC is potentially of great impor-

tance in the Japanese EFL context, if ‘‘to improve the practical

communication skills’’ is to be a goal of English teaching, and


also if one believes that ‘‘communication with dissimilar others’’

(Ting-Toomey, 1999) is worthwhile.

Research in L2 WTC

Although the negative effect of language anxiety on L2

language acquisition has been widely studied (Gardner &

MacIntyre, 1993; Horwitz, Horwitz, & Cope, 1986; MacIntyre

& Gardner, 1991, 1994), studies in WTC originated in commu-

nication research in the United States. Communication appre-

hension in a first language (L1) and its negative influence on

communication have been largely a matter of scholarly atten-

tion by communication researchers (Daly & McCroskey, 1984;

McCroskey, 1977). McCroskey and associates (McCroskey, 1992;

McCroskey & Richmond, 1987, 1991) proposed the construct

WTC, which captures the implications that communication

apprehension, introversion, reticence, and shyness have for com-

municative behavior. MacIntyre (1994) developed a path model

that postulates that WTC is based on a combination of greater

perceived communicative competence and a lower level of com-

munication anxiety, then applied the model to L2 communica-

tion. Studies conducted in various Canadian contexts combined

the WTC model with Gardner’s (1985) socioeducational model to

examine the relations among variables underlying WTC in the

L2. In the socioeducational model, integrativeness refers to the

desire to learn an L2 to meet and communicate with members of

the L2 community. It is expected that students with a higher

level of integrativeness and stronger L2 learning motivation will

more readily interact with an L2 language group than those with

a lower level of integrativeness and motivation. MacIntyre and

Clement (1996) showed that in a monolingual context in Canada,

motivation influenced WTC in the L2, which, in turn, resulted in

increased frequency of L2 communication. In studies conducted

in various ethnolinguistic contexts, WTC was a predictor of

frequency of communication in the L2, whereas motivation was


a predictor of WTC, frequency of communication, or both

(MacIntyre & Charos, 1996; MacIntyre & Clement, 1996).

L2 WTC is not regarded as a simple manifestation of L1

WTC, which is more a personality trait, since a much greater

range of communicative competence is evident in an L2 than in

an L1, and L2 communication carries ‘‘a number of intergroup

issues, social and political implications’’ that are usually not as

salient in L1 use (MacIntyre et al., 1998, p. 546). Social contexts

and learning contexts are believed to affect WTC. MacIntyre,

Baker, Clement, and Conrod (2001) investigated how orientations

and social support influence WTC inside and outside classrooms.

Baker and MacIntyre (2000) examined the differences in non-

linguistic outcomes of French immersion versus nonimmersion

programs. As expected, immersion students displayed higher

WTC and more frequent communication in French. Among the

nonimmersion students, perceived competence was strongly

correlated with WTC, but among the immersion students,

communication anxiety correlated most strongly with WTC.

MacIntyre’s (1994) model focuses on the way perceived

competence and anxiety affect WTC separately, whereas in

Clement’s model (Clement & Kruidenier, 1985), the two are

seen to form a higher order construct, self-confidence in using

the L2. We can postulate, combining these two models, that L2

self-confidence leads to L2 WTC.

Attitude Toward the International Community: InternationalPosture

In a context in which there is not much daily contact with

native speakers of English, learners are not likely to have a clear

affective reaction to the specific L2 language group, as Dornyei

(1990) pointed out; however, attitudes toward American and

other English-speaking cultures are surely created through edu-

cation and exposure to media. Yashima (2000) indicated that

English seems to represent something more vague and larger


than Americans and British in the minds of young Japanese

learners. For many learners, English symbolizes the world

around Japan, something that connects them to foreign coun-

tries and foreigners, or ‘‘strangers’’ in Gudykunst and Kim’s

(1984) sense, with whom they can communicate by using En-

glish. Although English tends to be associated more with Western-

ers than non-Westerners, it is increasingly perceived as a

means to communicate with Asian neighbors. Within the frame-

work of the dual goals of Japanese EFL learners mentioned

earlier, some students are most concerned with their immediate

goals, such as tests, grades, and academic achievement, whereas

other students seem to feel the international-communication

goal to be personally relevant. Conceptually, one can have both

goals to a higher or a lower degree. Although it acknowledges the

importance of both orientations, the current study focuses on

the latter. Individual differences on the second continuum

were tentatively named international posture. Included in the

concept, among other things, are interest in foreign or inter-

national affairs, willingness to go overseas to stay or work, and

a readiness to interact with intercultural partners. Although

this psychological tendency is not as concrete as the attitude

toward the L2 community in Canada, it is believed to affect

learners’ L2 learning and communication behavior.

Yashima (2002a) attempted to operationally define interna-

tional posture based on preliminary studies1 and examined, in

the Japanese EFL context, relations among international pos-

ture, L2 learning motivation, L2 proficiency, and L2 communi-

cation variables including confidence in L2 communication and

WTC. An L2 communication model was constructed and tested

using structural equation modeling (SEM) with a sample of 297

Japanese university students. Our analysis of the data indicated

that international posture, hypothesized as a latent variable,

predicted motivation, which, in turn, significantly predicted pro-

ficiency in English. Motivation appeared to affect self-confidence

in L2 communication, which led to L2 WTC. In addition, a direct

path from international posture to L2 WTC was hypothesized


because we assumed that those with a higher score on international

posture would be more interested in intercultural contact, which

often requires use of an L2, than those with a lower score. This path

was significant. The model’s fitness to the data was good, which

indicates its appropriateness to the context. Our premise was that

those who find international/intercultural communication goals

personally relevant would have the behavioral intention to commu-

nicate in the L2 and would interact with strangers using the L2

more frequently, as discussed in Yashima (2002a). In Yashima

(2002a), however, L2 behavior or frequency of communication did

not enter into the model, because the university students studied

might not have had opportunities to talk in the L2 even if they had

been willing. The next step, therefore, was to investigate whether

WTC could predict L2 communicative behavior in intercultural

contact situations and learning situations in which learners have

the freedom to decide to communicate or not. Studies need to be

carried out with programs that offer students increased opportu-

nities in L2 communication.

Research Objectives

Two investigations with different groups of Japanese teen-

age informants were conducted with the following objectives:

1. To examine whether Japanese learners’ WTC results in

L2 communicative behavior in intercultural contact situa-

tions both inside and outside the classroom.

2. To examine variables that affect WTC in the L2 and com-

municative behavior in this context. In doing so, the relation-

ship between the construct international posture, confidence

in L2 communication, and L2 learning motivation will be

explored. For these variables, the same path model used in

Yashima (2002a) will be replicated with a younger popula-

tion. The researchers hypothesize that WTC is a direct result

of self-confidence in L2 communication, which is a combina-

tion of communication anxiety and perceived communication


competence. International posture is hypothesized to relate

to WTC and L2 communicative behavior. The hypothesized

model to be tested is presented in Figure 1.

The second of the two studies was conducted to supplement the

first in a different intercultural learning situation.

To examine these two research questions, the target popula-

tion needs to have opportunities and freedom to interact with

speakers of English if they choose. For this purpose two groups

of high school students were selected: group 1, students in a high

school in which native speakers of English teach EFL courses and

work as homeroom teachers, and group 2, high school students

who participated in a study-abroad program in the United States.

Investigation 1

Method

Participants

Two cohorts of 166 students studying at a high school in

Kyoto participated in the study. In this school 11 native speakers

give content-based English language instruction and are avail-

able for outside-of-class consultation or questions by the stu-

dents. The school’s program, including the curriculum and

teaching methods, is quite unconventional among Japanese

Frequency ofCommunicationin L2

WTC in L2

Confidence in L2Communication

(Proficiency)

L2 LearningMotivation

InternationalPosture

Figure 1. L2 communication model to be tested.


high schools. Each class has two homeroom teachers, one of

whom is a native speaker of English. The programs for cohort

1 (82 students matriculated in 1999) and cohort 2 (84 students

matriculated in 2000) are identical. The age of the participants

was either 15 (if they had not had a birthday in the year) or 16

years old (if they had already had a birthday) when the study

was conducted. There were 150 girls and 16 boys. Because of this

imbalance, gender difference is not considered in this study,

though we can point out that this kind of English communica-

tion–focused program usually attracts more girls than boys in

Japan. Two students were eliminated from the sample because

they were from bicultural families with a parent who is a native

speaker of English.

For SEM, data from 154 (141 girls and 13 boys) students

was used.2

Procedure

A set of questionnaires with attitudinal/motivational measures

and WTC scales was administered in July 1999 for cohort 1 and July

2000 for cohort 2. The homeroom teacher distributed the question-

naires to students and instructed them to take their time answering

the questions at home before returning them to the teacher. When

the questionnaire was administered, students had studied in the

program for 3 months, beginning the previous April. The Test of

English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)–Institutional Testing Pro-

gram (ITP) was administered in April right after matriculation.

Materials

The questionnaire included the following scales. Higher

Cronbach’s alphas were reported in a former study in which

the same scales were used for a larger sample.3

Motivation intensity. As a measure of motivation, six items

on motivational intensity (Cronbach’s a¼ .81) were taken from

research by Gardner and Lambert (1972). Students were asked


to rate the degree to which each statement matched their state

of mind. In contrast to the original format of three multiple-

choice answers, 7-point scales were used, as we hoped to achieve

a larger amount of variance.

Desire to learn English. The other measure of motivation

consisted of six items on desire to learn English (a¼ .68) from

Gardner and Lambert (1972). The original format was again

changed to a 7-point scale.

Approach-avoidance tendency. Seven items served to

assess the tendency to approach or avoid non-Japanese within

Japan (a¼ .73). Examples are: ‘‘I want to participate in a volun-

teer activity to help foreigners living in the surrounding commu-

nity’’ and ‘‘I want to make friends with international students

studying in Japan.’’ Students were asked again to evaluate their

own behavioral inclinations on a 7-point scale for each of the

seven items. This scale was developed on the basis of work by

Gudykunst (1991), Kim (1991), and Gouran and Nishida (1996).

Interest in international vocation/activities. Six items

(a¼ .62) indexed how interested an individual was in an inter-

national career and living overseas (e.g., ‘‘I want to work in an

international organization such as the United Nations,’’ ‘‘I’d

rather avoid the kind of work that sends me overseas fre-

quently’’). Respondents recorded ratings on 7-point scales. The

items were developed based on Tanaka, Kohyama, and Fujiwara

(1991) and Yashima (2000).

Interest in foreign affairs. Two items (a¼ .63) reflected stu-

dents’ interest in international issues: ‘‘I often read and watch

news about foreign countries’’ and ‘‘I often talk about situations

and events in foreign countries with my family and/or friends.’’

Ratings were recorded on 7-point scales. These two items were

taken from Kitagawa and Minoura (1991).

Willingness to communicate in English. This study used

the WTC scale published in McCroskey (1992). The scale has 20

items, of which 12 are related to four communication contexts

(public speaking, talking in meetings, talking in small groups,

and talking in dyads) and three types of receivers (strangers,


acquaintances, and friends; e.g., ‘‘Present a talk to a group of

strangers,’’ ‘‘Talk with an acquaintance while standing in line,’’

‘‘Talk in a large meeting of friends’’) and 8 are filler (dummy)

items. The students were to indicate, using a number between 0

and 100, the percentage of time they would choose to communicate

in each type of situation when completely free to do so (a¼ .93).

Communication anxiety in English. The 12 items for com-

munication apprehension or anxiety used by MacIntyre and

Charos (1996) served as the measure of communication anxiety

in English. The students indicated the percentage of time they

feel nervous in each situation/with each receiver by selecting a

number between 0 (I would never feel nervous) and 100 (I would

always feel nervous). The items applied to the same four com-

munication contexts and the same three types of receivers as in

the WTC scale (a¼ .88).

Perceived communication competence in English. Twelve

items, also from MacIntyre and Charos (1996), constituted the

measure of self-judgment of communication competence. Stu-

dents indicated their self-assessed competency in each situation

and with each receiver using a number between 0 (completely

incompetent) and 100 (completely competent). The contexts and

receivers were the same as the ones for the WTC and commu-

nication anxiety scale (a¼ .93).

Frequency of communication in and outside the class-

room. Five self-report items (a¼ .70) were constructed to assess,

on a 10-point scale from not at all to very frequently, how often

students volunteered communication in and outside the class

(e.g., ‘‘I volunteered answers or asked questions in the class-

room,’’ ‘‘I asked teachers questions outside the classroom in

English’’). Studies using scales that assess frequency of com-

munication with L2 groups were consulted to create the scales

(e.g., in Clement & Kruidenier, 1985, participants estimated the

number of interactions; in MacIntyre & Charos, 1996, items

from the perceived competence scale were adapted to measure

the frequency of communication).


A translation from Japanese of most of the scales is pro-

vided in Appendix A. (Refer to McCroskey, 1992, for the WTC

scale and MacIntyre & Charos, 1996, for the communication

anxiety and perceived communication competence scales.)

Results

Frequency of Communication in and Outside Classrooms andIts Correlation with WTC

Table 1 shows the mean of response to frequency of commu-

nication items and their correlations with WTC scores. The stu-

dents communicate more frequently when called upon to answer

(M¼ 4.48) or in asking questions outside the class period

(M¼ 4.45) than in volunteering to answer or ask questions in

class (M¼2.44) or in talking with friends and acquaintances out-

side the school context (M¼ 2.23). WTC significantly correlates

with all items of frequency of communication and the total of

three items (1, 4, and 5) that measure voluntary communication.4

Table 1

Frequency of communication and correlations with WTC

Frequency of communication items Mean (SD) Correlation

with WTC

1. Volunteer to answer or ask questions in class 2.44 (2.08) .38**

2. Answer when called upon by the teacher 4.48 (1.85) .26**

3. Participate in activities such as pair work 4.74 (2.53) .26**

4. Ask questions or talk to the teachers

outside class

4.45 (2.59) .26**

5. Talk with friends or acquaintances

outside school

2.23 (2.71) .30**

Frequency of voluntary communication

(items 1, 4, and 5)

9.13 (5.55) .42**

Note. N¼159.**p< .01.


Administrator

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Analyses of Correlation Coefficients

The mean and standard deviation for each variable as well

as Pearson correlation coefficients among the main variables

were calculated, and the correlation matrix is shown in Table

2. L2 WTC correlates with communication anxiety (�.25) and

perceived communication competence (.53). As shown in the

table, WTC relates to many motivational/attitudinal variables

as well as frequency of communication. The TOEFL-ITP scores

assessed at the time of matriculation did not correlate signifi-

cantly with any of the communication or attitudinal variables.

Structural Equation Modeling

A model was constructed following Yashima (2002a). Con-

sidering the nature of the participants and the program in which

they were enrolled, frequency of communication, defined by

voluntary communication items 1, 4, and 5, was added as a con-

sequence of WTC and international posture.5 WTC was entered as

a latent variable defined by two observed variables consisting of

WTC items randomly separated into two groups (odd-numbered

items and even-numbered items). Approach-avoidance tendency,

interest in international vocation/activities, and interest in for-

eign affairs define the latent variable, international posture.6

Motivational intensity and desire to study an L2 define the latent

variable, motivation. In addition, it was conceived that a lack of

communication anxiety and perceived communication competence

form a higher order construct, communication confidence in the

L2 (Clement & Kruidenier, 1985). The model was tested with

Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) version 4.0 (Arbuckle,

1995).7 The model with standardized path coefficients is shown

in Figure 2. All the paths are significant. The model’s fitness to

the data is good: Root Mean Square Error of Approximation

(RMSEA)¼ .06, Goodness-of-Fit Index (GFI)¼ .93, Comparative-

Fit Index (CFI)¼ .96. Although the chi square is significant,

w2 (48)¼ 74.48, p< .01, the result indicates that this model is


Table2

Correlation

matrix

(observed

variables)

Variables

Mea

n(S

D)

12

34

56

78

910

11

12

1.Willingnessto

communicate

inL2

49.03(19.71)

1.0

2.Willingnessto

communicate

inL2-1

51.53(19.50)

.98**

1.0

3.Willingnessto

communicate

inL2-2

46.52(20.87)

.98**

.91**

1.0

4.Com

munication

anxiety

inL2

48.12(15.46)�.25**

�.25**

�.23**

1.0

5.Perceived

communication

competen

cein

L2

43.54(17.87)

.53**

.49**

.54**

�.26**

1.0

6.Motivation

alintensity

28.08(6.39)

.39**

.39**

.37**

�.23**

.25**

1.0

7.Desireto

learn

L2

27.41(5.93)

.26**

.25**

.26**

�.23**

.24**

.71**

1.0

8.In

tergroupapproach

-

avoidance

tenden

cy

36.67(6.10)

.38**

.38**

.37**

�.25**

.24**

.43**

.46**

1.0

9.In

terest

inintern

ation

al

vocation

/activities

30.25(5.95)

.33**

.36*

.29**

�.16*

.25**

.39**

.36**

.52**

1.0

10.In

terest

inforeignaffairs

6.34(2.58)

.27**

.27**

.25*

�.15

.19**

.25**

.32**

.26**

.28**

1.0

11.Frequen

cyof

communication

9.11(5.41)

.43**

.43**

.41**

�.23**

.24**

.37**

.29**

.40**

.22**

.29**

1.0

12.TOEFLscores

345.16(26.95)

.05

.04

.06

�.15

.04

.04

.02

�.01

�.05

.04

.02

1.0

Note.

N¼154.Willingnessto

communicate

inL2-1

includes

odd-numbered

WTC

item

s;Willingnessto

communicate

inL2-2

includes

even

-numbered

WTC

item

s.*p

<.05.**p<.01.

appropriate to describe the current data. The attitudinal con-

struct international posture significantly predicts WTC both

directly, as well as indirectly through motivation and L2 commu-

nication confidence. In addition, it is shown that WTC predicts

voluntary communicative behavior in the L2; the path from inter-

national posture to frequency of communication is also signifcant.

Discussion

When the questionnaire was administered, students had

studied in the program for 3 months. At this stage frequency of

WTC in L2

WTC 1 WTC 2

PerceivedCompetence Anxiety

L2CommunicationConfidence

InternationalPosture

Motivation to Learn L2

MotivationalIntensity

Desire toStudy L2

Frequency ofCommunication

ApproachAvoidance

InternationalVocation

Interest inForeign Affairs

e8

e3

.94.96

.76–.36

.43

.82.85

.73

.27.45

.33

.64

.75

.43

.59

Item 4 Item 5

.65 .63

.45

e5

e6 e7 e9

e10 e11

e4

e1

e2

e12 e13

e14

e15

e16

Item 1

Figure 2. Results of SEM: L2 communication model with standardizedestimates. N¼ 154. All path coefficients are significant at p< .01.w2(48)¼ 74.48, p< .01. RMSEA¼ .060; GFI¼ .93; CFI¼ .96.


communication in the classroom was generally low, and students

had not yet found English-speaking friends outside school. How-

ever, those who had higher WTC scores tended to communicate

more in the classroom and to ask questions or talk to teachers

more frequently outside class. The correlation matrix shows that

perceived communication competence most strongly relates

to L2 WTC. Unlike in L1 communication or in full-immersion

situations with experienced learners, in which anxiety was the

most important factor, the WTC of learners in nonimmersion

situations is influenced to a larger extent by perceived commu-

nicative competence than by anxiety (Baker & MacIntyre, 2000;

MacIntyre, Clement, & Donovan, 2002). The participants in the

current research have a tendency similar to that of nonimmer-

sion students in Canada. A student’s perception of his or her

competence seems to be strongly related to how willing he or she

is to communicate in an FL.

The hypothesized paths in the SEM were all significant,

and the goodness-of-fit indicators indicate that the model fits the

data well. The model shows that those who are more willing to

communicate in various interpersonal situations in the L2 tend

to initiate communication in the classroom, ask teachers ques-

tions outside of class, or communicate with friends/acquain-

tances outside the school context. Self-confidence, which is a

combination of perceived communication competence and a

lower level of anxiety, is crucial for a person to be willing to

communicate. Those who have more interest in international

affairs and a desire to be involved in international vocation/

activities seem to be more willing to communicate in English

and voluntarily engage in communication more frequently. In

addition, those who are internationally oriented tend to be more

motivated to study the L2. The higher level of motivation relates

to self-confidence, which appears to result in WTC in the L2.

Those individuals who can conceptualize when and how

they might use English seem to be more likely to initiate

communication behavior as well as the requisite learning

behavior.


Investigation 2

Method

Participants

The participants in the second study were Japanese high

school students who participated in a year-long study program in

the United States in 1999 and 2000 through a Japanese student

exchange organization. In this program, students stay with host

families for 3 weeks while attending an intensive language course

before leaving for different parts of the United States to attend local

high schools. The study focuses on this initial 3-week period and 57

students who responded to both a predeparture questionnaire and

another administered at the end of the 3 weeks. Six students who

responded only to the second questionnaire are included in part of

the analyses. Three of those who completed both questionnaires

had stayed more than 6 months in either the United States or

Australia and therefore were eliminated from the sample. Among

the remaining 60 students, there were 17 boys and 43 girls; fifteen

15-year-olds, twenty-seven 16-year-olds, fifteen 17-year-olds, and

three 18-year-olds. The average age was 16.1 (SD¼ .84).

Procedure

Two sets of questionnaires were administered: first, prior to

departure, and second, at the end of the three-week initial pro-

gram. The first questionnaire and an envelope for returning it

were handed to each student at the orientation meeting before

departure. Students were told to take their time and respond to

each question at home and to return the questionnaire within

2 weeks. The second questionnaire was administered by a

Japanese coordinator of the program at the end of the 3-week

course in the United States. The students responded either in

class or during their free time, after which they handed or

mailed the completed questionnaire to the coordinator.


Materials

First questionnaire (prior to departure). The same measures

on attitudes/motivation and communication from Investigation 1

were used: motivation intensity (Cronbach’s a¼ .86), desire to

learn English (a¼ .67), approach-avoidance tendency (a¼ .79),

interest in international vocation/activities (a¼ .57),8 interest in

foreign affairs (a¼ .71), willingness to communicate in English

(a¼ .90), communication anxiety in English (a¼ .93), and per-

ceived communication competence in English (a¼ .87).

Second questionnaire (during the sojourn). Questions on

frequency and amount of communication with host nationals

were asked. The scales assessing frequency of contact or com-

munication with L2 groups were used in past studies (e.g.,

Clement & Kruidenier, 1985; MacIntyre & Charos, 1996), and

these studies were consulted to write the items. In addition,

questions to assess the degree of satisfaction in interpersonal rela-

tionships and perception of adjustment were created based on

studies by Searl and Ward (1990), Tanaka et al. (1991), Yashima

and Tanaka (2001), and Ward and Kennedy (1999).

Frequency and amount of communication in English. Five

self-report items assessed, on 5-point scales from not at all to very

frequently, how often participants volunteered communication

with their host family as well as in and outside the classroom at

school (e.g., ‘‘I reported to my host family what happened at

school,’’ ‘‘I volunteered answers or asked questions in the class-

room’’). In addition to the above items, a question was asked to

quantify the amount of conversation with host family members:

‘‘How long on average did you talk with your host family members

every day?’’ (answered in hours and/or minutes). This question

was added in an effort to explore alternative measures of the

amount of interaction that took place between the host and

sojourner.

Satisfaction in interpersonal relationships. Two items

assessed, on 5-point scales, how satisfied participants felt with

communication and friendship with Americans (a¼ .63): ‘‘As a


whole, communication with Americans I met in the U.S. (was not

enjoyable at all � was very enjoyable)’’ and ‘‘Regarding the depth

of friendship with Americans I have met, (I am not at all satis-

fied � I am very much satisfied).’’

Perception of adjustment. Six items assessed, on 5-point

scales, culture shock and psychological adjustment (a¼ .70).

Examples are ‘‘I don’t have any anxiety about my life in the

U.S.’’ and ‘‘There are many things I don’t understand about

Americans.’’

Items in the questionnaire administered during the sojourn

are presented in Appendix B.

Results

Because the number of informants who responded to both

questionnaires was small, we concentrated on descriptive statis-

tics and correlations among the variables, with a focus on corre-

lations between variables assessed prior to departure and those

during the sojourn. The mean and standard deviation of each

variable, as well as Pearson correlation coefficients among the

main variables, were calculated, and the correlation matrix is

shown in Table 3. Variables 1 to 8 in the table were assessed

prior to departure (N¼ 54) and variables 9 to 17 were observed

during the sojourn (N¼60).

WTC assessed before departure significantly correlates

with some frequency of communication items assessed during

the sojourn: WTC and frequency of communication item 1, ‘‘I

reported what happened at school to my host family’’; WTC and

frequency of communication item 3, ‘‘I volunteered answers or

asked questions in class.’’ WTC also significantly correlates with

the amount of time the student spent talking with the host

family. Intercorrelations among variables assessed before

departure show a similar pattern to that found in Investigation

1. For example, the correlation between WTC and communica-

tion anxiety was �.15, and that between WTC and perceived

communication competence was .46. Two variables that


Table

3

Inte

rcor

rela

tion

sa

mon

gob

serv

edva

ria

ble

s

Vari

able

sM

ean

(SD

)1

23

45

67

89

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

1.

Wil

lin

gn

ess

toco

mm

un

icate

inL

254.5

3(1

5.6

5)

1.0

2.

Com

mu

nic

ati

onan

xie

tyin

L2

48.1

2(1

8.1

8)�

.15

1.0

3.

Per

ceiv

edco

mm

un

icati

onco

mp

eten

cein

L2

46.1

7(1

4.1

8)

.46**

�.0

41.0

4.

Mot

ivati

onal

inte

nsi

ty31.5

6(6

.15)

.33*

�.2

5.0

61.0

5.

Des

ire

tole

arn

L2

30.3

2(5

.54)

.43**

�.1

7.1

2.6

5**

1.0

6.

Inte

rgro

up

ap

pro

ach

-avoi

dan

cete

nd

ency

39.8

0(6

.51)

.37**

�.0

6.1

3.5

1**

.57**

1.0

7.

Inte

rest

inin

tern

ati

onal

voc

ati

on/a

ctiv

itie

s33.4

0(5

.44)

.40**

�.2

6�

.01

.34**

.37**

.40**

1.0

8.

Inte

rest

info

reig

naff

air

s8.0

7(3

.00)

.05

.13

.12

.05

.05

.25

.19

1.0

9.

Fre

qu

ency

ofco

mm

un

icati

on1

3.6

2(.

99)

.27*

�.0

7.1

1.1

7.2

9*

.21

.28*

.27*

1.0

10.

Fre

qu

ency

ofco

mm

un

icati

on2

3.9

7(.

90)

.20

�.1

8�

.06

.05

.01

.21

.27*

.31*

.54**

1.0

11.

Fre

qu

ency

ofco

mm

un

icati

on3

2.7

7(1

.03)

.28*

.00

.11�

.14

�.0

3.1

6.1

3.0

7.0

6.2

11.0

12.

Fre

qu

ency

ofco

mm

un

icati

on4

2.8

7(1

.03)

.05

.25

�.0

2�

.05

�.0

6.2

0.0

4.1

5.1

0.0

3.5

0**

1.0

13.

Fre

qu

ency

ofco

mm

un

icati

on5

3.5

8(1

.20)

.07

�.0

6�

.23�

.03

.12

.23

.30*

.17

.33**

.16

.14

.38**

1.0

14.

Am

oun

tof

tim

e(m

in)

86.7

7(7

6.3

1)

.37*

�.2

2�

.11

.15

.29*

.15

.34*

.08

.50**

.41**

�.0

1�

.03

.31*

1.0

15.

Sati

sfact

ion

infr

ien

dsh

ipw

ith

hos

ts7.5

9(1

.67)

.31*

�.1

3�

.01

.10

.27

.31*

.31*

.11

.46**

.41**

�.0

6�

.01

.28*

.40**

1.0

16.

Dif

ficu

lty

inm

ak

ing

frie

nd

s8.3

9(2

.55)

�.1

2.2

5.0

3�

.04

�.1

9�

.33*

�.3

5*

.01

�.4

2**

�.3

3*

�.0

9�

.01

�.1

9�

.27

�.6

4**

1.0

17.

Per

cep

tion

ofad

just

men

t16.3

4(4

.35)

.16

�.3

2*

.14

.08

.25

.26

.31*�

.11

.40**

.17

.02

�.0

9.2

3.3

4*

.62**

�.8

2**

*p<

.05.

**p<

.01.

constituted international posture in Investigation 1, interest in

international vocation/activities and interest in foreign affairs,

show significant correlations with frequency of communication

in host family situations (items 1 and 2). Of the motivation

variables, desire to learn an L2 significantly correlates with

frequency of communication item 1 and amount of time spent

talking with the host family. These results mostly confirm those

obtained in correlational analyses in Investigation 1.9

Next we examined how frequency of communication is

related to students’ perception of interpersonal relationships

and adjustment. As shown in Table 3, frequency of communica-

tion items 1 and 2 correlate significantly with satisfaction in

friendships with Americans and negatively with difficulty in

making friends (the total of items 1, 5, and 6 in perception of

adjustment). Frequency of communication item 1 also correlates

with perception of adjustment. The amount of time one spends

with the host family (number of minutes) significantly correlates

with both satisfaction in interpersonal relationships and positive

perception of adjustment.

WTC assessed before departure correlates significantly

with satisfaction in friendship with hosts, but not with difficulty

in making friends and perception of adjustment. Communication

apprehension shows a significant negative correlation with per-

ception of adjustment, which indicates that L2 anxiety is some-

what related to the sense of adjustment to a new environment.

Interest in international vocation/activities correlates with all

the adjustment variables.

Discussion

It was found that those who had a higher score in WTC prior

to departure tended to engage in communication with host

nationals more frequently and for longer periods of time once

they were into the sojourn. The amount of time spent talking is

an outcome of interpersonal interaction, which reflects the host’s

availability, receptiveness, and willingness to interact with the


sojourner to a certain extent. It is noteworthy that WTC on the

part of the sojourner assessed before departure is related to the

amount of conversation that is the outcome of the two parties’

contribution. We conjecture that the sojourner’s WTC might

result in behavior that invites hosts to interact with the sojourner

more extensively.

Those who communicated with hosts more frequently and for a

greater amount of time seem to have had a higher degree of satis-

faction in human relationships, experienced less difficulty in mak-

ing friends, and perceived their adjustment to the host country to be

better than those who engaged in communication less frequently.

General Discussion

This study focuses on antecedents and results of WTC in an

L2. Regarding the first research objective, the two studies indi-

cate that WTC predicts frequency and amount of communica-

tion. In Investigation 1, SEM shows that those who are more

willing to communicate in various interpersonal situations in the

L2 tend to initiate communication in the classroom. In Investi-

gation 2, those who recorded a higher score in WTC before

departure were inclined to engage in communication with host

nationals more frequently and for longer periods of time once

they were into the sojourn than those who were less willing to

communicate.

As for the second research objective, regarding antecedents

of WTC, correlational analyses in both studies show that per-

ceived communication competence most strongly relates to WTC.

How one perceives one’s competence is likely to be most strongly

related to how willing one is to communicate in an FL. The SEM

results confirmed those of Yashima (2002a). To have self-

confidence in communication in an L2 is crucial for a person to

be willing to communicate in that L2. In addition, students who

have a greater interest in international affairs, occupations, and

activities seem to be more willing to communicate in the L2 and


voluntarily engage in communication more frequently. Further-

more, those who are internationally oriented seem to be moti-

vated to study the L2. The higher level of motivation links to

self-confidence, possibly through learning behavior and its

resultant competence.

This study relates to the international-communication goal

of FL learning in the framework of dual goals hypothesized at

the outset of this article. It is concerned somewhat more with the

‘‘intergroup’’ than the ‘‘interpersonal’’ side, although it relates to

both, in Noels’ (2001) ‘‘heuristic model of the motivation process’’

(p. 53), in which the motivational propensities to learn an L2

were analyzed along a continuum from the ‘‘interpersonal pro-

cess’’ (L2 use in class, effort and persistence, intrinsic/extrinsic

motivation, personal identity) to the ‘‘intergroup process’’ (L2

use outside class, WTC, integrative orientation, ethnolinguistic

vitality). In the current study our participants were those who

were enrolled in communication-oriented classes and study-

abroad programs. In fact the results show that WTC relates to

L2 use both inside and outside the classroom. Although this

study only addresses the second of the two hypothesized goals,

it goes without saying that the first goal, which is more concrete

and immediate for many Japanese learners, needs to be dealt

with in future research. Particular emphasis should be placed on

how these two goals can be connected through educational initia-

tives, as well as on how learners in their daily effort to achieve

their immediate goals can feel the personal relevance of learning

English for communication and relate themselves to the world,

becoming conscious of their possibilities and contributions in

English-using worlds. In doing so, we need to consider how the

self-determination theory with intrinsic/extrinsic orientations

(Noels, Clement, & Pelletier, 1999; Noels, Pelletier, Clement, &

Vallerand, 2000), as well as goal-setting theories and self-

efficacy theories as described in Dornyei (2001), are used to

account for the process.

Those who are conscious of how they relate themselves to

the world tend to be motivated to study English, as they


probably visualize ‘‘English-using selves’’ clearly. The ‘‘possible

selves’’ and ‘‘ideal selves’’ Dornyei (2003) cited (from Markus and

Nurius, 1986) in his discussion might be helpful for under-

standing the motivation process of Japanese learners. ‘‘Possible

selves’’ represent individuals’ ideas of what they might or would

like to become, and this might ‘‘provide a conceptual link

between cognition and motivation’’ (Dornyei, 2003, p. 454). Is it

possible to hypothesize that learners who clearly visualize

‘‘possible’’ or ‘‘ideal’’ English-using selves are likely to make an

effort to become more proficient and develop WTC and engage in

interaction with others using English?

The results of Investigation 2 show that frequency and

amount of L2 communication relate to satisfaction in the sojourn

experience, and satisfaction in friendship with hosts, in particu-

lar. How much the student shares information and experiences

with the host family members appears to have much to do with

the student’s perception of well-being during the initial stage

of a sojourn (and therefore during a short-term sojourn).10

Students’ perception of adjustment or satisfaction as assessed

here reflects the perceived quality of human relationships. The

results of the current research therefore indicate that the quan-

tity of communication is a factor in perceiving the interaction

positively, at least in the initial period of a sojourn and language

learning. This confirms Yashima’s (2002b) findings that the

greatest concerns of many adolescent sojourners in the United

States were the development of interpersonal relationships and

improvement of their English as an outcome of a sojourn, and

that the amount of interaction with their American peer group is

perceived as an important indicator of such an outcome. The

results also demonstrate the role L2 communication interface

can play in a sojourn experience. Kim (1988, 2001) stated that

it is through communication that individuals learn to relate

effectively and appropriately to their social environment and,

hence, are able to fulfill various needs and desires, emphasizing

the acquisition of communicative competence in the language of

the group with which they interact.


In the long run, the experience of interpersonal communi-

cation, if it is perceived as favorable, results in more interest in

intercultural communication and/or international affairs and

motivates students to put in more effort in learning the lan-

guage. Considering that students need to communicate in order

to improve communicative skills and gain confidence, the

researchers hope to postulate a circular and interactive model

to show the dynamics of interest, motivation, learning, con-

fidence, and communication.

Limitations of the current study need to be discussed. Neither

Yashima (2002a) nor this study sufficiently addresses the relation-

ship between L2 competence and L2 self-confidence. This needs to

be explored further. Methodologically, it will be necessary to recon-

struct for adolescent learners a few of the variables used in the

current study whose reliability indices were not high enough,

including interest in international vocation/activities. Alternative

methods of assessing frequency/amount of communication as a

behavioral manifestation should be considered, for example, class-

room observation and observation of communication events.

Combining others’ ratings and self-ratings will result in a more

comprehensive assessment of reciprocal communication behavior.

Despite these limitations, the results of this study provide

further evidence to confirm that WTC is a useful construct for

accounting for L2 communication. They also demonstrate that

motivational/attitudinal as well as affective variables relate to

the WTC and the communication behavior of Japanese EFL

learners. Future research might focus on the interactive/recipro-

cal aspects of L2 communication. For example, contextual vari-

ables that make a person more or less willing to communicate

both in and outside classrooms should be investigated, which

will make it necessary to look into how sociocultural contexts

influence communication behavior and how learners’ inter-

actions with their environment, including teachers, colearners,

and hosts, make the learners more or less willing to communi-

cate. To obtain a close-up picture of how WTC in an L2 is devel-

oped, undermined, or coconstructed in interaction, interpretive


and critical approaches to communication are called for, in addi-

tion to social-scientific or functional approaches. What we need

is a dialectical approach in which we combine the findings from

these different types of research, as Martin and Nakayama

(2000) suggest, to better understand the complex phenomenon

of L2 intercultural communication.

Communication is a process in which people influence each

other. Intercultural communication is the sharing and construc-

tion of meaning through interaction with dissimilar others.

Through learning an L2 or FL, we can expand our communica-

tive repertoires and make the construction of shared meaning

easier. WTC in an L2 involves readiness to initiate this process,

which will hopefully lead to mutual understanding and trust.

Revised version accepted 24 July 2003

Notes

1The test-retest reliability was checked for newly developed scales, andpreliminary studies were conducted employing many of the variables usedhere.2Ten students with more than two items on their questionnaires not filledin were eliminated from the sample. Nineteen students with one missingvalue and one with two missing values were left in the sample by enteringthe item mean of the sample for the missing values. There were 21 suchslots out of 10,164 (.002%).3Cronbach’s alphas reported in Yashima (2002a) were as follows:motivation intensity (a¼ .88); desire to learn English (a¼ .78); approach-avoidance tendency (a¼ .79); interest in international vocation/activities(a¼ .73); interest in foreign affairs (a¼ .67).4When three items instead of five are used for the scale, Cronbach’s alphadrops to .60. However, since how frequently one responds when called uponor participates in pair work is mostly determined by how often thesesituations are created by the teacher, we decided that excluding theseitems was reasonable.5Single items as indicators sometimes inflate the residual varianceestimates; it is therefore preferable to use more items for each indicatorvariable as we do for other variables.6In Yashima’s (2002a) study with college students, four variables definedthe latent variable, international posture. In this model, interculturalfriendship orientation was dropped following suggestions by a statistician,


as it seemed to overlap conceptually and operationally with otherobservable variables.7The TOEFL scores were not entered into the model, as the correlationswith other variables are low.8Interest in international vocation/activities represents a fairly largeconceptual framework. Collecting more homogeneous items mightimprove internal consistency but might not encompass the concept we arelooking at here (see Little, Lindenberger, & Nesselroade, 1999, for furtherdiscussion). We need to increase the number of items for our futureresearch based on rigorous item analyses.9An alternative analysis was tested in which five items of frequency ofcommunication were used as a scale (a¼ .62), with the following results.The correlation between WTC and frequency of communication (total) was.27; those between intergroup approach-avoidance tendency, interest ininternational vocation/activities, and interest in foreign affairs andfrequency of communication (total) were .32, .33, and .30, respectively.Correlations between frequency of communication (total) and satisfactionin friendship with hosts, difficulty in making friends, and perception ofadjustment were .34, �.32, and .23, respectively. We decided to examinecorrelations with each item of frequency of communication separately, aswe believe they contain useful information.10Kim’s (2001) stress-growth model as well as Adler’s (1987) study indicatethat going through periods of uncertainty or difficulty is a learning andgrowing experience that leads to long-term accommodation to the culture.

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Appendix A

English Translation of the Questionnaire Items

Seven-point Likert-type scales are used if not otherwise

specified.

Motivational Intensity

1. Compared to my classmates, I think I study English relatively hard.2. I often think about the words and ideas that I learn about in myEnglish classes.3. If English were not taught at school, I would study it on my own.4. I think I spend fairly long hours studying English.5. I really try to learn English.6. After I graduate from college, I will continue to study English andtry to improve.

Desire to Learn English

1. When I have assignments to do in English, I try to do themimmediately.2. I would read English newspapers or magazines outside my Englishcourse work.3. During English classes I’m absorbed in what is taught and concen-trate on my studies.4. I would like the number of English classes at school increased.5. I believe absolutely English should be taught at school.6. I find studying English more interesting than other subjects.

Intergroup Approach-Avoidance Tendency

1. I want to make friends with international students studying inJapan.2. I try to avoid talking with foreigners if I can.3. I would talk to an international student if there were one at school.4. I wouldn’t mind sharing an apartment or room with an inter-national student.5. I want to participate in a volunteer activity to help foreigners livingin the surrounding community.6. I would feel somewhat uncomfortable if a foreigner moved in next door.


7. I would help a foreigner having trouble communicating in a restau-rant or at a station.

Interest in International Vocation/Activities

1. I would rather stay in my hometown.2. I want to live in a foreign country.3. I want to work in an international organization such as the United

Nations.4. I’m interested in volunteer activities in developing countries such as

participating in Youth International Development Assistance.5. I don’t think what’s happening overseas has much to do with my

daily life.6. I’d rather avoid the kind of work that sends me overseas frequently.

Interest in International News

1. I often read and watch news about foreign countries.2. I often talk about situations and events in foreign countries with my

family and/or friends.

Frequency and Amount of Communication in English (10-point scale)

1. I volunteered to answer or ask questions in class.2. I answered when I was called upon by the teacher.3. I participated in classroom activities such as pair work.4. I asked teachers questions or talked to them outside the class period.5. I talked with friends or acquaintances outside school in English.

Appendix B

During the Sojourn

Frequency and Amount of Communication in English (5-point scale)

1. I reported to my host family what happened at school.2. I initiated a conversation with a host family member.3. I volunteered answers or asked questions in class.4. I asked teachers questions or talked to them outside the classperiod.5. I talked with people I met at parties or meetings.


How long on average did you talk with your host family members everyday? (answered in hours and/or minutes)

Satisfaction in Interpersonal Relationships (5-point scale)

1. As a whole, communication with Americans I met in the UnitedStates (was not enjoyable at all � was very enjoyable).2. Regarding the depth of friendship with Americans I met (I am not atall satisfied � I am very much satisfied).

Perception of Adjustment (5-point scale)

1. It is difficult to make friends in this country.2. I am anxious about how I will cope during the coming year.3. I don’t have any problems so far nor do I have anxiety about my lifein the United States.4. I enjoy everything now.5. There are many things I don’t understand about Americans.6. I feel frustrated about various things including language problems.


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